Netball Singapore is proud to announce the national squad of 17 for the M1 Asian Netball Championships (M1 ANC) which is set to take place from 1 to 9 September. A provisional squad of 14 is also selected for a training tour in Sri Lanka.

Following their standout performances at the M1 Netball Super League (M1 NSL) 2018, several new players have been invited to trial with the 2017 squad and 5 fresh players have made the cut.

18-year-old Lee Pei Shan earned her spot in the senior squad after impressing the National selectors at the M1 NSL playing for the champions, Blaze Dolphins. Standing at 1.86m tall, Lee, a goal-shooter, will provide height and build for Singapore inside the shooting circle.

The squad also welcomes 21-year-old young shooter from the Fier Orcas, Tan Xin Yi who put in a goal average of 95% at the M1 NSL. Tan was one of the most consistent shooters in the M1 NSL and won the MVP award for her team.

Midcourt player Amelia Wijendra from the SRC Barracudas also made the squad. Wijendra is quick on her feet and offers speed in her play. Defenders Ayshath Zaseela, a 19-year-old player from the SRC Barracudas and Khor Ting Fang from the Blaze Dolphins are selected too. Zaseela, Khor and Lee together with Toh Kai Wei and Aqilah Andin, were part of the youth side which won the 2017 Asian Youth Championships.

The M1 ANC is the second major tournament for National Head Coach, Natalie Milicich, whose team finished 2nd runners-up at the 2017 Mission Foods Nations Cup.

“I am really excited about this ‘new look’ team. We have a younger side with some size and enthusiasm that will contribute to building a strong team culture. Change brings new challenges for players and new opportunities to grow. I really trust these players to do the job and we will be working very hard on our structures and combinations in preparation for a successful campaign at the M1 Asian Netball Championships,” said Milicich.

The squad will be led by the experienced trio of captain Vanessa Lee, Nurul Baizura and Charmaine Soh, who have amassed a total of 283 international caps among themselves.

A provisional squad of 14 has also been chosen to travel to Sri Lanka for a training stint from 26 May to 1 June. The training tour will give Milicich’s charges the opportunity to match up against the Asian rivals.

The national squad also has a training tour from 7 to 14 July which will have them heading down under to Auckland, New Zealand to train against ANZ Premiership side, Northern Mystics and Beko Netball League team, Northern Marvels. The teams will provide the Singapore players the challenge of playing against bigger bodies who are used to playing regularly at a high intensity.

The M1 ANC 2018 is the regional qualifier for the Netball World Cup in Liverpool in 2019 and the top two teams qualify for the world event. Singapore finished second runners-up at the 2016 Asian Netball Championships after champions Malaysia and runners-up, Sri Lanka, when it was held in Bangkok, Thailand.

Sri Lanka has won the ANC four times since its inception in 1985. Singapore has won it three times, Malaysia twice and Hong Kong once. The 11th edition of the Asian tournament will see 11 to 12 countries competing at the OCBC Arena, Singapore Sports Hub.

M1 Asian Netball Championships Squad

No

Name

International Caps

Age

Height (cm)

Positions

1

Vanessa Lee (Captain)

89

34

170

C/WD/GD

2

Nurul Baizura

104

28

172

C/WD/GD

3

Charmaine Soh

90

28

177

GA/GS

4

Kimberly Lim

65

23

162

WA/C

5

Nur Aqilah Andin

53

22

174

GD/WD/GK

6

Melody Teo

36

26

176

GK/GD/WD

7

Toh Kai Wei

15

21

170

GA/GS

8

Siti Nurshawallah

8

25

172

WD/C/WA

9

Sindhu Nair

0

22

173

GK

10

Lee Pei Shan*

0

18

186

GS

11

Tan Xin Yi*

0

21

179

GS

12

Khor Ting Fang*

0

22

170

GD/WD/GK

13

Amelia Wijendra*

0

23

157

C/WA

14

Ayshath Zaseela*

0

19

170

GD/WD

15

Chen Lili

75

28

196

GK/GS

16

Shina Teo

30

22

172

GK/GD

17

Zhang Ailin

22

30

167

GA/WA

Note: Top 14 players in the above list (also in grey fields) made the squad of 14 for the Sri Lanka Training Tour